On his business philosophy, outlined in an official biography, the new owner of the Stars says he likes to hire the best people, create goals, assist them any way he can “and let them run the organization.”

Hey, Tom Gaglardi: Have you ever actually met the other owners in town?

Unfortunately, the new guy didn’t get the question. He will once he gets a close-up look at Jerry Jones and Mark Cuban.

It may take awhile. Unlike Jerry and Cubes, the Barnum and Bailey of sports, Gaglardi (pronounced guh-LAR-dee) will be an absentee owner, at least at first. But if you’re wondering how distant he’ll be, he’s not Tom Hicks, either. Unlike Hicks, who bought into hockey only because of the new arena but bankrolled a Stanley Cup champion before his sports/business empire crumbled, Gaglardi, a proud Canadian, is as passionate about hockey as his new Dallas peers are about their respective sports. Even at 43, he still laces ’em up once or twice a week.

But he also has significant Texas roots, which might sound a little odd, especially for someone who, as was evident at his first news conference Monday, pronounces “process” with a long O, says “a-boat” when he means “about” and calls the Stars a great “organ-eye-ZA-tion.”

Can’t these Canadians talk right?

“I’m trying to get used to using the word ‘y’all,’ ” he said.

You’d have thought his mother would have taught him how to speak Texan. The former Karen Gieser grew up in Longview, where, while home from the University of Texas in the early ’60s, she met a young Canadian at church. Bob Gaglardi was a bright, ambitious fellow who escaped to East Texas to get out from under the fame of his flamboyant father, Phil, British Columbia’s minister of highways.

“I found a university as far away from Kamloops as I could,” Bob said.

Actually, Phil Gaglardi — a dynamic, controversial politician, radio host and Pentecostal preacher who punctuated his speech with exclamation points, as in, “If I tell a lie, it’s because I think I’m telling the truth!” — was an associate of R.G. LeTourneau, founder of what is now LeTourneau University in Longview.

Bob Gaglardi got his degree and Texas wife and packed her off to British Columbia, where they raised four kids in the family’s burgeoning hotel and restaurant business.

Tom worked his way up from busboy at 13. Along the way, he came back frequently to his mother’s hometown to visit his grandparents, now deceased. He also has relatives in Burleson and Odessa, a few of whom attended Monday’s news conference.

But the most important person he brought along, if you’re a Stars fan, was Jim Lites. The former Stars president returns to his former role, which wasn’t exactly a sure thing.

For all his talent and institutional knowledge, Lites had, after all, been part of another group bidding on the Stars. Gaglardi could have advised him to beat it. But he kept hearing that Lites was just the guy to help rebuild the fan base.

Gaglardi calls himself “a very good listener” who drives people crazy with questions. He’s apparently not afraid of tough ones, either.

His first for Lites: Why would you want to do that again, at your age and station?

And if that weren’t direct enough, he also asked how Lites got such a good-looking wife.

Frankly, I’ve been asked the same question, and not just by my father-in-law. Jim and I are what you might call overachievers.

Anyway, Lites says the task ahead reminds him of the early days in Dallas, though not quite so daunting that they’d ask themselves, as they did then, “What if nobody comes?”

Gaglardi believes that, to fill the seats, they must “get out and spread the word” about a dynamic young team. The late Phil Gaglardi would have appreciated the fervor. Tom bears a few family traits. He’s a much larger man than his 5-5 grandfather, but he apparently looks like him. A Canadian sculptor used him as a model for a statue that stands in Kamloops.

He’s also a diehard, lifelong Cowboys fan. Says his closet is full of Cowboys gear. He inherited the interest from his dad, a fan from the Eddie LeBaron days.

Tom hasn’t been to JerryWorld or met its proprietor, but he eagerly anticipates an invitation. When that day comes, Gaglardi should probably remember something his father said Monday:

“A good CEO hasn’t got any ego.”

Just good, sound advice in case something rubs off at the introduction.

To post a comment, log into your chosen social network and then add your comment below. Your comments are subject to our Terms of Service and the privacy policy and terms of service of your social network. If you do not want to comment with a social network, please consider writing a letter to the editor.

About Kevin Sherrington

Kevin Sherrington, a general sports columnist, was born in Dallas and grew up in Houston. He has worked at five newspapers in Texas. He has worked at The Dallas Morning News since 1985. He had no idea his career would come to blogging.